Albany Area Arts and Entertainment Briefly – April 17, 2015

Audition set for ‘Twentieth Century’

ALBANY — Theatre Albany will conduct auditions for its May production, “Twentieth Century,” at 7:30 p.m. Sunday and Monday at the theater, 514 Pine Ave.

Adapted by Ken Ludwig from the classic comedy by Ben Hecht and Charles McArthur, the play centers on Oscar Jaffe, an ego-maniacal Broadway director, who finds himself bankrupt and his career on a down slide. He boards the Twentieth Century Ltd. and encounters his former discovery and ex-chorus girl Lily Garland, now a temperamental Hollywood star, on the train between New York and Chicago. He pulls out all the stops in trying to persuade her to return to Broadway in his upcoming show.

Director Mark Costello is looking to cast 10 males and three females. Auditions will consist of readings from the script. Rehearsals are set to begin April 27, with performances scheduled for May 22-24 and 28-31.

For further information, call the theater at (229) 439-7193.

Meanwhile, Theatre Albany opens its current two-week production, “Anne of Green Gables,” at 8 p.m. tonight at the theater. Other curtain times for “Anne” are 8 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday, 8 p.m. April 23-25 and 2:30 p.m. April 26. The box office number is (229) 439-7141. Tickets are $20, adults; $15, seniors, and $10, students and active military.

In addition to the “Anne of Green Gables” production, the theater is also hosting a special “Tea with Anne” event on April 25 from 10 a.m. until noon, giving children an opportunity to spend time with Natalie Etheridge, who plays Anne in the production, and other cast members, who will all be in costume.

Tickets to the tea are $25 for one adult and one child, $5 for each additional child and be purchased at the box office (229) 439-7141. Tickets include tea, light hors de’oeuvres, activities and photo opportunities. All proceeds go to benefit Theatre Albany.

CAPITOL ART

Southwest Georgia congressmen will be announcing the winners of their respective art competitions today and this weekend.

U.S. Rep. Sanford D. Bishop Jr., D-Albany, who represents Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District, will announce the winners of the district’s 2015 Congressional Art Competition at 4 p.m. today at the Albany Museum of Art, 311 Meadowlark Drive.

U.S. Rep. Austin Scott, R-Tifton, who represents the state’s 8th Congressional District, will announce his 8th Congressional District’s winners at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Thomasville Center for the Arts, 600 E Washington St, Thomasville.

Each spring, the Congressional Institute sponsors a nationwide high school visual art competition to recognize and encourage artistic talent in the nation and in each congressional district. The competition provides an opportunity for members of Congress to encourage and recognize the artistic talents of their young constituents. The first-place winner in each district will be displayed at the nation’s Capitol.

The top winners in each district will get two airline tickets to Washington, D.C., for the national ceremony and the opening of the student art exhibit.

BATTLING BANDS

Chehaw park will be hosting the two-day finale of Albany’s first ever Battle of the Bands, produced by EGA Productions, April 25-26. The two event will feature the top ten finalists Mopeland, Days to Come, Wampus Creek, Downtown Disturbance, SouthTown, Ryn and the O.G.s, Cutting Teeth, Torq, Ozell Road and From Dust to Man. Each day will feature five of the finalists. Saturday’s performances will also include openers 3CC and closers Highway 55. Sunday’s will feature opening act Jenko and headliners Unbreakable Bloodline.

Advance tickets for each day are $10 or $20 for the weekend. Advance VIP tickets are $35 for each day or $65 for the weekend. There will be an addition charge of $5 for tickets purchased at the gate. Saturday’s shows begins at 3:30 p.m. and Sunday’s shows begin at 1:30p.m. For tickets and scheduling information visit www.albanybotb.com.

ART AND MUSIC SHOWCASE

This year the Georgia Kiwanis District Art & Music showcase, featuring artwork and musical performances presented by Kiwanis clubs from all over the state is being held in Albany on April 25. Entries to the annual art competition, featuring roughly 90 pieces from high school students throughout Georgia, will be on display to the public at the Albany Area Arts Council headquarters at the Carnegie Library at 215 N. Jackson Street, before the exhibit is closed for judging.

The music portion of the showcase will begin at 3 p.m. where 20 musical performers from schools around the state will perform at the Albany Municipal Auditorium right next door to the Carnegie Library at 200 N. Jackson Street. That event is free and open to the public.

Entrants in both portions of the showcase will be competing for a total of $15,000 in college scholarships, $7,500 for art and music respectively.

Kristin Caso, a member of the Dougherty County Kiwanis Club who is helping to organize the event, said this is the first time the Kiwanis Division 5 (South Georgia) showcase has been held in Albany.

“We’re really proud to have it down here for the first time,” Caso said. “It’s going to a really good event. And it is a very family-friendly event.”

COTTON HALL MUSICAL

At Cotton Hall, home of Swamp Gravy in Colquitt, the curtain goes up this evening on “9-to-5: The Musical.” Based on the 1980 movie that starred Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, the musical features a high-energy score by Parton in a hilarious tale of female co-workers developing a close friendship while also hatching revenge against their boss in the pre-Internet era.

The play “is different from what our audiences are used to, a little edgier,” said Colquitt/Miller Arts Council Artistic Director Kate Willis, “But still relatable and very funny. Our cast is incredibly talented and features some familiar faces fans will recognize, as well as new talents they’ll love.”

Performance times are 7:30 p.m. today and April 24; 2 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Saturday and April 25, and 2 p.m. Sunday and April 26. Tickets are $15 and can be obtained by contacting the box office at (229) 758-5450 or visiting www.swampgravy.com.